Hill 488, Ray Hildreth
Hill 488, Ray Hildreth
1 Rating(s)
List: $15.99 | Sale: $11.20
Club: $7.99

Hill 488

Author: Ray Hildreth, Charles W. Sasser

Narrator: Jonathan Yen

Unabridged: 10 hr 45 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 04/29/2015


Synopsis

On June 13, 1966, men of the 1st Recon Battalion, 1st Marine Division were stationed on Hill 488. Before the week was over, they would fight the battle that would make them the most highly decorated small unit in the entire history of the U.S. military, winning a Congressional Medal of Honor, four Navy Crosses, thirteen Silver Stars, and eighteen Purple Hearts—some of them posthumously.

During the early evening of June 15, a battalion of hardened North Vietnamese regulars and Viet Cong—outnumbering the Americans 25 to 1—threw everything they had at the sixteen Marines and two Navy corpsmen for the rest of that terror-filled night. Every man who held the hill was either killed or wounded defending the ground with unbelievable courage and unflagging determination—even as reinforcements were on the way.

All they had to do was make it until dawn . . .

About Ray Hildreth

Ray Hildreth was one of three Recon Marines who were able to walk off Hill 488 unassisted. He retired from the U.S. Postal Service in 2002 and is a martial-arts instructor in Tulsa, Oklahoma.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jean

I found this to be an excellent book about the Vietnam War and the story reveals the ethos of the United States Marine Corps. The story provides the minute by minute recounting of the overnight battle on June 15-16, 1966 on Niu Vu Hill (Hill 488) in the Hieg Due Valley. Sixteen marines and two Navy c......more

I recently read 2 books hearkening back to Vietnam. These books were hard for me but I'd like to recommend them to anyone with even a semi-open mind. Most of what people think they know about Nam and the soldiers who were there is the product of Hollywood...a very politically left Hollywood where pe......more

Goodreads review by John

yeah. I lived it with these guys. I've been in tropical jungles like this, in the bush on these kinds of nights, but I was never attacked like these guys. It's an awesome story.......more

Goodreads review by Woody

The beginning of this book reminded me of my boot camp experience but while serving in Vietnam I never experienced the horrors these men experienced. I do remember the sense of never knowing what the heck we were doing out there. And feeling like mushrooms (kept in the dark and fed s__t).......more